Since you were all so patient when I was MIA last week, I figured I would upload this. There may be some errors, for which I apologize. I have three exams this week so my brain is quickly turning to mush. I still plan on another update for Wednesday.
"Jack, buddy, you are going to have to calm down before we open presents." Jane grabbed hold of the boy who was currently running circles around their kitchen and pulled him up into her arms. "I know you're excited, but calm down bud." She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and set him down again. He walked over to the living room and sat down cross-legged in front of their Christmas tree, wiggling slightly as he tried to contain his excitement. Jack took in the huge pile of gifts that Santa had brought and looked back at Jane pleadingly.
"Mama…please? Tell Mommy to hurry up."
Jane chuckled and headed over to the stairs to call up to her wife. "Hey Maur, the native is getting restless. You almost ready?"
Maura appeared at the top of the stairs, her hands raised to one side of her head as she put in her earring. "I'll just be one more minute, I promise." She disappeared down the hall again and Jane headed into the living room to wait with Jack. It had taken a huge amount of restraint on his part not to dig into his presents, and Jane was starting to sympathize with him as they were waiting on Maura. Thankfully, they heard her soft footsteps on the stairs just seconds later, and Jack started bouncing excitedly when Maura joined Jane on the couch.
"Go ahead Jack." Maura urged.
Without another moment's hesitation, Jack started to dig through the pile of gifts. It took him a few seconds to decide which one he wanted to open first, but eventually settled on a large package near the back of the tree. Jane and Maura watched in amusement as he tore the wrapping paper off the box before holding it up to inspect the contents. It was a tee-ball set, complete with a bat, a tee, several balls, and a little baseball glove. He looked up at Jane excitedly and held the box up for her to see.
"Tee-ball!" He grinned. "Look Mama, I have a glove now! I'm like Dustin Pedroia!"
Jane exchanged a smile with her wife before moving to sit on the floor with Jack. "That's awesome bud. We can play when the weather gets warmer."
A few seconds later, he was opening another gift. As he continued, the room was filled with excited squeals, the sound of paper tearing, and lots of laughing as Maura and Jane couldn't contain their mirth over Jack's antics. They were immensely enjoying their first Christmas with a child, and they knew that once the rest of the family joined in a few hours, Jack would be inundated with more gifts. As Jane watched her wife sipping on her coffee and watching their little boy with his last few gifts, she couldn't help but wonder if next Christmas there would be another little one in the mix. Their appointment with the fertility specialist was first thing tomorrow, and she was definitely excited at the prospect. Nervous too, but mostly excited. Jane smiled at the thought of her wife holding their baby, and then the smile grew wider as she pictured Maura pregnant.
"Mama look…it's a car like the one you drive!" Jack's voice pulled her back into the present. He held up a box with a remote control police cruiser in it. "It has lights and makes noises." He said excitedly.
"Wow! That's cool!" Jane smiled. "When Uncle Frankie gets here he can show you how to drive it."
Jack's eyes widened at the mention of his Uncle Frankie. He practically worshipped the ground Frankie walked on. "Oh yeah! Uncle Frankie can show me!" He set the box down and started to open the Lego set he had unwrapped a few minutes before.
Maura took in the sight in front of her. There was wrapping paper everywhere, and it seriously looked like a bomb had detonated in their living room. They really needed to clean up, but for the moment, Maura was content to watch Jane sort Lego pieces with their son. Jack's adoption process was all but finalized. They just needed to meet with the judge to make things official. They hadn't received a court date yet, but Maureen had assured them it would likely be not too far into the new year.
"Jane, I was thinking now might be a good time to talk to Jack before your family gets here. Don't you think?" Maura set her coffee cup down.
Jane looked up at Maura, then over at Jack, who was engrossed in his Lego set. She nodded and moved to join Maura on the couch. "Hey bud? I know you are excited about all your new toys, but Mommy and I want to talk to you about something."
Jack gave a small sigh, and put down the pieces he had just snapped together. He scrambled up between the two of them on the couch. "Did I do something bad?" He looked back and forth between the two of them.
Maura reached out and pulled Jack onto her lap, running her fingers through his fine hair before kissing him on the forehead. "No Jack. You didn't do anything wrong." She reassured. "Mama and I wanted to talk to you because we want you to be part of our family. We are adopting you. Do you know what that means?"
He shook his head, his fingers playing with the buttons on Maura's cashmere sweater. "Ashley at school is adopted." He said quietly.
Jane scooted closer. "Jack, adopting you means you will be part of our family, forever. We love you so much, and we want you to be ours. Forever." She bent her head slightly so she could look directly at his piercing hazel eyes.
"So I won't have to go away?" He maintained his gaze on Jane. "I don't want to go away." He said seriously.
Maura pulled him closer to her chest. "No baby. You will never have to go away." The little boy relaxed against her, winding a strand of her blonde hair around his finger.
"Good." Jack nuzzled against Maura's shoulder. "I love you Mommy." His words brought tears to Maura's eyes, and she rubbed his back gently as she tried to contain her emotions.
"I love you too Jack. I love you so much."
Jane leaned over and brushed a tear from Maura's cheek. Her own eyes were glistening and she took in a breath as she kissed the top of Jack's head. "Hey buddy, we have one more question for you, and then you can go back to playing." He turned his face from Maura's shoulder and looked at her inquisitively.
"What would you think about being a big brother some day?" Jane asked. "Mommy and I are thinking of maybe having a baby, but we wanted to ask you first.
Maura loosened her grip on Jack and he sat up and looked at the both of them. He eventually shrugged and looked up at Maura. "Would it be a girl baby or a boy baby?" He asked.
Maura smiled. "We don't know yet. It could be either. There's no baby yet Jack, we just wanted to see how you felt about it."
His brow furrowed as he contemplated this information. "I could play with it." He looked up hopefully. "I could teach the baby how to play Legos."
Jane grinned and scooped the boy out of Maura's lap and settled him on hers. "Maybe when the baby gets a little older you can play Legos." She studied the little boy in her lap for a few seconds. "I know you are going to be such a good big brother Jack."
Jack nodded and allowed himself to be pulled into a hug. His arms wrapped around Jane's neck and he squirmed when she blew a loud raspberry on his cheek.
"I love you buddy."
"Love you too Mama. Can I play now?"
"Let's clean up the wrapping paper first, but then you can play, okay?" Maura stood and went to grab a garbage bag from the kitchen pantry. In a few short minutes, they had the living room back in order, more or less. As she straightened up, Maura turned to Jane. "I'd say that conversation went fairly well."
Jane leaned in and kissed her forehead. "I'd have to agree." She looked over at Jack playing with his Legos. "How'd we end up with such an awesome kid?"
Maura shook her head. "I don't know." She placed the garbage bag full of wrapping paper next to the back door for Jane to take out the next time she went outside. "If the next one is half as good as Jack, we will be doing pretty well."
Jane took a few steps toward Maura, standing beside her as they watched Jack together. "Just think, in a year we might be a family of four." They watched Jack play for a few more minutes as they both contemplated the idea of being a family of four.
"Everyone should be here shortly." Maura said. "You and Jack need to get dressed."
"What?" Jane looked down at her green and red striped pajama pants, which matched Jack's. "Something about my outfit you don't like Maur? I'm hurt."
Maura laughed and swatted Jane lightly on the shoulder. "You know what I mean Jane. Now go and get your son and get changed. I need to put the roast in the oven."
"Yes ma'am." Jane executed a mock salute. "Come on Jack, Mommy has ordered us to get changed." She bent down and he climbed onto her back. "We'll be back in a few minutes." She said with a wink. They scampered upstairs and returned not too long after.
A few hours later, more presents had been opened and everyone had gathered around the table to eat. Between Maura and Angela, there was a ridiculous amount of food, and everyone dug in immediately. Maura looked around the table at her friends and family between bites. Seated immediately to her right was Jane, who was currently in a discussion with Frost about the homicide unit. Next to Frost was Frankie, who was making faces at Jack across the table, causing the little boy to giggle every few seconds. Angela sat at the head of the table, bending down every so often to make sure Jack didn't need any help eating. Noticeably absent were Frank Sr. and Tommy. Jane hadn't said anything about it, but Maura knew their absence was weighing heavily on the three Rizzolis that were present.
"You gonna eat? Or just stare at it?" Jane whispered in her ear. Maura picked up her fork and knife again and cut up her slice of roast beef.
A short time later, everyone had surrendered to overfull stomachs and pushed their chairs back from the table as they admitted defeat to the large amount of food still on the table. Jack wiggled down off his chair and made a beeline toward his Uncle Frankie. Frankie picked the boy up and pulled a comic book out of his back pocket and started to read it with Jack.
Jane placed a hand on Maura's thigh under the table and squeezed gently, getting Maura's attention. "Everything okay?" She asked quietly. "You've been quiet for a while."
Maura scooted her chair closer to Jane's so she could rest her head on Jane's shoulder. "Everything is fine Jane. I'm just enjoying the company." She smiled when she felt Jane's lips pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
"Me too." Jane replied. "When everyone leaves, I think you and I are in need of some alone time." She whispered. "I was thinking a nice Christmas bubble bath…"
"That sounds perfect Jane." Maura whispered back. She reached down and picked up Jane's hand, resting it on her thigh and stroking her thumb across the back of Jane's knuckles. "Angela seems upset about your father and Tommy not being here. Do you think we should tell her about Jack and the baby?"
Jane regarded her mother, who was sitting quietly at the end of the table, watching Jack talking with Frankie and Frost. "That might not be a bad idea. Are you sure about telling her about the baby though? It isn't definite yet." She whispered.
"It can't hurt." Maura whispered back.
"Okay then. As long as you're sure." Jane kissed her head again and cleared her throat. "Hey guys, Maura and I have a couple announcements to make." Jane looked around the table as several sets of eyes focused on her. "I think the first one won't come as much of a surprise unfortunately, but we wanted to tell you that we have almost completed the process of officially adopting Jack."
No one was surprised by Jane's announcement, but Angela still beamed with pride as she clasped her hands by her throat. Frankie and Frost offered their congratulations and everyone settled down again.
"Okay Maur, you want to tell them our other news?" Jane looked over at her wife, who nodded.
"Well, Jane and I just wanted to let you know that we are planning on expanding our family. We are meeting with a fertility specialist tomorrow to learn about our options for having a baby. If everything goes according to plan, we may have another little one around the table next year."
Angela quickly got to her feet and walked over to where Jane and Maura were sitting. She motioned for Jane to get up and pulled her into a crushing embrace. From Maura's vantage point, she noticed tears glistening in her mother-in-law's eyes.
"I'm so proud of you Janie." Maura could hear Angela whisper. "You have grown up into a strong woman, and now you're going to be a mother." Angela brushed her tears away as she pulled back from Jane, and didn't hesitate to pull Maura in next. "I'm so glad my Janie met you Maura." Angela whispered. "You're so good for her." Angela released her after a few seconds and took a breath to compose herself. Brushing the tears from her face, Angela smiled broadly and looked around at Frankie and Frost who were smiling as well and had raised their glasses to Jane and Maura.
"Who's ready for dessert?" She asked, receiving a chorus of cheers in response.
"Well, it took some time, but Jack is finally asleep." Jane said as she entered their room. The excitement from the day coupled with the large quantities of sugar he consumed over the course of the afternoon had wound the little boy up. "You ready for our bath?"
"I've been ready for the past hour. I thought he would never go to bed." Maura chuckled. She pulled Jane into the bathroom where she had set up candles and dimmed the lights. Jane turned on the water and let the tub start to fill. "It seems so quiet now that everyone has left." Maura slipped off her robe and moved to start unbuckling Jane's pants.
"It does." Jane agreed. "It was a fun day, but I've gotta admit, I'm wiped." She tossed her t-shirt into the laundry hamper and unclasped her bra, letting it fall to the floor beside Maura's robe.
When the tub was full of water and bubbles, Maura stepped into the steaming water and lowered herself so she was sitting against the back of the tub. She grinned appreciatively as Jane stripped off her underwear and stood naked while Maura situated herself.
"I saw that." Jane chuckled. "You were checking me out Maur." Jane stepped into the water and settled against the opposite wall of the tub. She reached up a bubble-covered hand and pressed the button to turn on the jets. Realizing that Maura was sitting across from her she frowned. "Hey, you're way too far away. Get over here."
Maura smiled and scooted over to where Jane was, settling between her wife's legs and leaning back to rest her head against Jane's shoulder. Jane's arms immediately wrapped around her waist, and she allowed herself to relax into the embrace.
"Mhmm. This is nice." The warm water and the close proximity of her wife had Maura turning into putty within seconds.
"It is." Jane replied, her hands splaying across Maura's flat stomach. "You nervous for tomorrow?"
"Not nervous. More excited than anything." Maura replied.
"Yeah…me too. You know, today I was thinking about how we could be pregnant in the next month or so." Jane's hands rubbed circles on Maura's stomach. "And I keep picturing you pregnant, and I have to admit, I find the idea extremely sexy."
Maura giggled and placed her hands over Jane's on her stomach. "I doubt you'll find me sexy when I'm as big as a house." She shifted her head slightly so she could look up at Jane. "What do you want? A boy or a girl?"
Jane thought about it for a few seconds before leaning to kiss Maura. "I don't care as long as the baby is healthy. We have a boy who is totally awesome, so if we have another that will be great. But if we have a girl, I will be thrilled too. Especially if she is a little you." Jane smiled as she kissed Maura again.
"I never really pictured myself having kids until I met you." Maura admitted. "My relationship with my parents was so strained that I couldn't imagine being able to properly nurture a child. But then I met you and I knew that you had all the qualities of the perfect parent and I couldn't help but wonder what our children would be like."
"I don't know how you ever thought you wouldn't be a good mother Maura." Jane said. "You are so good with Jack. He absolutely adores you."
"Well the feeling is mutual." Maura replied. As she thought more about her parents she couldn't help but wonder how her mother was doing. In the years since her father had passed, Maura had only had minimal contact with her mother over the phone. While one part of Maura yearned for a relationship with her mother, the other part told her to cut her losses as her mother was the one who had burned her bridges. But as Maura had seen Angela interacting with Jack earlier in the day, she was suddenly struck with a sense of loss over the fact that her mother didn't even know that she was going to be a grandmother.
"You got awful quiet. What's going on in that head of yours?"
"I was just thinking about my mother." Maura sighed deeply. "I miss her."
"You should call her." Jane replied. "I don't want to push you, but if you ever wanted to invite her, she would be more than welcome to come visit."
Maura nodded, once again thankful that Jane was so understanding about the issue. Her own strained relationship with her father certainly made her no stranger to dealing with estrangement. Maura suddenly yawned, feeling Jane chuckle as she did so.
"And that's our cue to head to bed." Jane reached up and shut off the jets. "Come on Maur, we have an early day tomorrow and I can think of one more present for my wife if she can stay awake."
"Will I have to unwrap it?" Maura smiled coyly as she pushed away from Jane and stood up in the tub, water streaming down her naked body.
"No unwrapping necessary." Jane smirked as she got to her feet.
Maura tossed her a towel from the rack. "Well then…what are we waiting for?"